Better Than
by TaelynHawker
Summary: DanielBetty. Daniel figures out what's right in front of him. Rating changed. This story is on indefinite hiatus.
1. In the Bathroom

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my 5lb cat. If I owned Daniel, I'd be doing much more creative things than writing about him.

Authors Note: This is only the second fanfiction I have ever posted. The first was in the Star Wars/Game category. So this is a switch up. But every fandom needs a little fluff. Also, this is unbetaed and was written at around 1am. But I think it's good for grammar and punctuation for the most part.

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Daniel left the room with one last questioning glance for his brother turned sister. The truce was uneasy at best, but it was going to have to do for now. He ran a sweaty hand over his face, which failed to refresh him. He looked at his hands, shaking and clammy and sweaty. With a deep breath he turned towards his office. He walked down the bare white hallway, suddenly aware of just how much it meant to him. It had been an appeasement before, something his father had given him that he'd had to take. It wasn't until his brother -sister- had tried to take it away that he had realized how much he liked having this position. He was still learning, he still made a million mistakes everyday, but he was enjoying the learning. Coming to work gave him a purpose he hadn't had in all his years of being a rich playboy. And working with Betty taught him something new everyday. These thoughts made him pause, he stopped in the middle of the fishbowl, as his employees walked cautiously by. He considered going back down the hallway, of explaining this revelation to Alex, the way he might have before the accident. But he didn't, there was no point, because there was too much time, pain, and distance between Alex and Alexis and the boy Daniel he had been. He felt a tightness in his chest at the thought, but he ignored it. He started walking again, startling a young woman who had stopped in front of him. He backpedaled so as not to run her down.

"Oh, Mr Meade. Are you okay?" He smile was partially flirtatious. It made him queasy. He gave her a tolerant smile.

"Just fine, thank you." He stepped to the side of her, and moved past her.

He needed someone to talk to. And he could think of only person who would actually understand what he wanted to say. Betty. And with Betty he might not even really have to say it. It seemed like she read his mind half the time anyway. His smile grew wider without him even realizing it. He walked a bit faster, but when he got to Betty's desk it was empty. He stopped short and looked around, a perplexed expression wrinkling his brow. Where was she? He looked to her desk, catching site of a t-shirt in the garbage. He leaned over, moving her chair, and pulling the garbage to him. He pulled the t-shirt out, and caught on it were two tickets. He looked closer. Wicked, and they were for that night. He wondered why she would throw them out. She'd been humming the songs for days. He'd found himself humming one on his way home himself and had blamed it on her.

He turned and walked down to the receptionist desk where Amanda was chewing gum and doodling on a pad of paper.

"Amanda?" He cleared his throat, slipping on finger between his collar and his neck to loosen his shirt. Amanda's eyes rolled to him, then realized who she was looking at and she sat up.

"Yes, Daniel?" He plastered a smile on her lips that even he could tell was fake.

"Have you seen Betty anywhere?" She rolled her eyes again and twitched her head in the direction of the bathroom.

"She went in there. She might have been crying. Or maybe she just needed to blow her nose. Ew, I don't know. Either way she hasn't come out yet." The phone rang and she turned back to her computer to answer it.

Daniel eyed the woman's bathroom, and considered. It wasn't like it would be the first time he had followed his upset assistant in there. But Betty could be funny when she was upset. With a small shrug he walked towards the door and opened it quietly.

………………

Betty had tried not to cry. There were very few times when she allowed herself to break down, especially at work. But between Alexis and Daniel fighting, spending the day with a mother who was not her own, breaking up with Walter, and then deciding to finally go after Henry only to find out that he had a girlfriend, she couldn't really help herself. She had been stupid, she realized now, to listen to Daniel. Daniel, who was her friend, and who she was sure believed what he said. But he was wrong, she wasn't better than any model. She was just Betty. And she would never find the kind of love that other girls did. She tried to make a hasty run to the bathroom, but she was pretty sure that Amanda had gotten a good look at her red blotched face. Oh she hoped not, most days she could deal with the snide comments of her co-workers. But she knew today she couldn't. She took another hand full of toilet tissue and wiped her puffy eyes. If she could just stop crying she could wash her face and go back to work. All she needed was something else to focus on. And really, how could she be upset over something so trivial. There were bigger concerns in her life than men. She took a deep, shuddering breath and straightened her shoulders. She took a look in the mirror, and found herself crying again. She let out a soft moan, and slowly slid herself to the floor. Maybe she could stay here and no one would notice.

………………

Daniel let the door close softly behind him and clicked the lock into place. If Betty was upset he wanted to give her the chance to let it out without an audience. He heard a low moan and a soft whimper and made his way towards the sink. There, on the floor, with her head buried in her hands, was his assistant. He quickly made his way to her, and kneeled down beside her.

"Betty?" He couldn't keep every layer of discomfort out of his voice, but he didn't think he sounded too bad. Crying women weren't something he had ever been very good at dealing with. Though Betty wasn't just any woman. She was the only woman Daniel had ever been able to call a friend. Her head shot up in a panic, and the top of her head collided directly into his nose. He let out a pained groan and fell back onto his ass.

"Oh Daniel! I'm so sorry! Did I break it? Let me see it?" She leaned over him, pulling his hands away from his face.

He looked up at her in dazed confusion. Her cheeks were a dark red, her eyes were extra bright from the tears she had cried, her already full lips were swollen. With her dark hair tousled and messy, she almost looked like she had just ended a romantic tryst in the bathroom. He didn't examine the rumbling of unease in the pit of his stomach at the thought of Betty being romantic with anyone. What did he care, if she was romantic with another guy? Hadn't he encouraged her to go after that Henry guy from accounting? An irrationally fearful thought dawned on him. He grabbed her hands and sat up, bring them face to face.

"Betty, did- did something happen? Did someone do something to you?" He looked her over, and she looked at him as if he had lost his mind.

"What? No one did anything. Daniel, who told you someone did something to me?" She tried to move away but he held her hands tighter.

"Why are you in here crying?" He asked softly, clearing his throat as his voice broke a bit. She bit her lip and looked away.

"It's nothing, Daniel. Really, there are so many more things, more important things-" She shook her head and looked down at their hands. She squeezed his. "I'm fine. Really." She looked at him and gave him a smile that never came close to touching her dark eyes. Something fiercely protective and possessive rose up in him, something he didn't expect. And he swallowed hard.

"Betty." His voice was low and deep and it demanded an answer, even as part of him chided himself for coming to ridiculous conclusions. Betty wouldn't let herself get taken advantage of. She was smarter than that. She sighed and squared her shoulders, making one feeble attempt to pull her hands free of his. But he wouldn't let her go.

"I broke up with Walter, just like everyone's been telling me I should. And Henry… he had asked me to go to Wicked. And so I thought… I thought I'd give it a chance. But I should have known better." She took another deep breath and stood. Daniel let her pull him up with her, not letting go of her hands, which shook in his. He watched her and waited for her to finish.

"He has a girlfriend. She came to New York to try to make it work between them." Her voice was so low he almost couldn't hear it. "You were wrong, Daniel. I'm not better than any model. And I shouldn't have been stupid enough to let myself believe I had a chance." She finally managed to pull her hands free, he let them go. She was wiping fresh tears from her eyes. She took her glasses off and set them on the side of the sink. Daniel felt that surge of protectiveness again.

"You aren't stupid. He's stupid. Henry is stupid, if he had you standing in front of him and couldn't see what he had. He's stupid for not seeing what was right in front of him the whole time." Betty turned her head to look at him with a slightly annoyed expression, as if she thought he was lying to make her feel better. He took a step closer to her and wrapped his large hands around her upper arms. He ducked his head to look into her eyes.

"I mean it. He's an idiot if he can't see everything you are. And whoever this girl is, she can't be half of what you are. Betty, you are amazing. You are so smart and so kind, and so… beautiful. You have no idea." She scoffed and his grip on her tightened.

"Betty, listen to me. Who keeps me together? Who makes sure I'm always doing to the best I can? Who took care of me after- after Sophia? My whole- my whole world works because you set it right. What kind of woman can compete with that?" He had pulled her to him as he spoke, without realizing it. She was looking up at him, her mouth slightly open, her eyes liquid and wide.

"Daniel." Her voice was shaking, and as he held her near him he realized she was shaking all over. He put his arms around her and pulled her body into his. He expected resistance, but she molded to him with ease. She fit him perfectly. He rested his head on hers. She let out a deep breath, the warmth of it hitting his neck. Every nerve ending felt it. In semi-shock he pulled away just enough to look her in the eyes. Her face was softened, the lines of sadness more weary. But her eyes, her eyes were what broke him. The softness there stopped his heart, and the wariness broke it. He found himself leaning in, closer and closer until they were sharing breath.

"Daniel?" A thousand questions he didn't know the answer to in that one word breathed into his own mouth. Her breath was sweet and warm.

"I don't know, Betty." He whispered back, letting his lips close the distance between them.

She sighed against his lips, and seemed to melt against him even more. One of his hands found its way to the softness of her neck and jaw, tracing the side of her face. The other wrapped firmly around her back, pulling her into him as close as he could get her. Her hands were bunched in his shirt front, but their grip was loosening, becoming the gently pressure of her splayed hands on his chest. The kiss was soft and light and he could feel the slight smile on her lips. His tongue came out to softly taste her bottom lip and she surprised him by opening her lips to his. With a low groan he pulled her closer and plundered her soft mouth. She was making soft sounds into his mouth and he thought it might drive him crazy.

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The loud banging on the door seemed to slam Betty's common sense back into her head. She jumped away from Daniel as if he had burned her. She looked at him, seeing the same shock that must be on her own face mirrored on his. Her skin burned where it had touched his and her mouth tingled. She could feel a wild flush covering her cheeks.

"Daniel? Your brother-sister-whatever is looking for you. She's in your office. So anytime Betty wants to stop wigging out and let you actually do your job…" Amanda's shrill call trailed off, and they could both hear the loud clack of her heels on the floor as she returned to her desk.

They continued to stare at each other. Betty's hands were shaking, she felt like she had when she was just 12 and she had tried to change a light bulb without turning the lamp off first. What was she doing? Making out with her boss, with her friend, in the bathroom of her work place? She put a hand over her mouth and shook her head. She really was a special kind of stupid.

She looked up at Daniel, her expression almost accusing. With her free hand she reached for and grabbed her glasses, carefully situating them on her face. Her head seemed to be shaking of its own volition.

"I- well- I just…" She shut her mouth firmly and tilted her head to side as she made herself make eye contact with him. She turned abruptly and started towards the door.

"Betty!" There was an edge of panic to his voice. That was to be expected. He must have just realized what he had done. She turned to him, surprised at how close he had managed to get.

"It's fine, Daniel. It was just- I was upset and you..." She took a deep, steadying breath and pushed her glasses up her nose. Reluctantly she met his bright blue eyes. "You were comforting me. It's fine." She managed a big smile that felt fake even to her. "You're a really good friend, Daniel. But we should really get back to work." She let her gaze drop.

"Is that-" He cleared his throat, and she watched his hand loosen his tie more than it already was, "Is that what we are, Betty? Just friends? Because that kiss-?"

"Was a mistake, obviously. Look, Daniel. I know you were just trying to make me feel better. And you did. It was extreme, but it worked. Okay? It's- it's fine." She smiled again, but this one felt even worse than the first one. She couldn't meet his eyes this time.

"I don't think it was a mistake." His voice was firm. She had to look at him. His eyes were bright and blue and hard to look at. His hands were buried in his pockets. "I think the mistake was mine. I thought Henry was being an idiot. But it was me, wasn't it? I was the idiot."

"Daniel. You're upset. You've had a lot to deal with, and you think- you think something is there that probably isn't. And as soon as things calm down, those things you think are there will be gone. And then we won't- we won't even be friends then." She turned away from him, and she had reached the door by the time he spoke again.

…………………….

"I don't think I ever had a real friend until I met you." Daniel swallowed hard, and continued. "And I don't just mean for a girl. I mean, I don't think that I've ever had a true friend. Not even Alex. I've been- I've been so stupid Betty. For months now you've stood there and you've helped me through everything. And I should have seen it sooner. I should have seen it when you quit the job with Sophia for me." He stopped, his left hand leaving his pocket to rub at his neck. He looked down at the floor, at her feet in there sensible shoes. He smiled a little. His stomach was rolling, and he thought that if stopped talking for too long then he might vomit. It seemed that the only way to stop that from happening and embarrassing them both a little bit more was to keep talking. He dared to look up from the floor and saw that she was staring at him, dark eyes wide with disbelief. He sighed.

"Let me take you to lunch, Betty. Please. Let us sit down and talk, before you decide if you need to run away." He held a hand out to her. She looked at it like it was a mouse trap that would snap her fingers.

"Okay." She said softly, after several minutes of consideration. Her hand slipped into his. It was soft as silk against his palm, and he hadn't expected that. He pulled to her to him slowly. She let herself be pulled. He lowered his head and brushed his lips over hers.

"Daniel" she whispered against his lips, and he smiled, because it wasn't a plea for him to stop. He found he liked the breathless quality in her voice when she said his name. He pulled away, putting an arm around her shoulders. She was soft in all the right places against him.

"Lunch." He said, and smiled down at her. She let out a snort of laughter and ducked her head nervously, but her smile was wide. And he found that he liked being the one to make her smile and blush that way. With his arm tight around her, they started for the door.

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Authors Note: Part II: Okay, so I promised myself I would write a story where I took the time to get them together gradually. But there are so many of those already out there, and I'm an instant gratification kind of girl. I'm thinking of continuing this, but I'm hoping for some feedback first. So PLEASE read AND review.


	2. Lunch

Disclaimer: All still stands the same. I own nothing but my cat, cute as she is.

Authors Note: Thank you all so much for the feedback! I'm glad people are enjoying this. In response to someone's comment I will say this: No one has said anything about love just yet. At the moment it's the startling realization that they can see each other as something other than just Betty and Daniel. And along with that the realization that they can be physically attracted to each other without knowing for sure what emotions are involved. While I'm not taking it as slowly as I had planned I promise they won't be singing I love you to each other just yet.

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Betty managed to get herself out from under Daniel's arm as inconspicuously as possible. She gave him a smile that she hoped didn't betray anything she was feeling. She could feel Amanda's eyes on them both. She didn't want to give the woman gossip fodder.

"I'm going to get my coat." She said, before walking away towards her desk, not waiting for Daniel to respond.

Her legs were unsteady beneath her. She could feel her heart trip-trapping in her chest. Her palms were sweaty. She wiped them on her skirt. Her thoughts ran riot. She didn't know what to do about this lunch. She didn't know what to do about Daniel. That kiss, those kisses, two of them, what was she going to do? Just an hour ago she had been devastated over Henry, now she was considering Daniel? She laughed bitterly to herself. Daniel. He was handsome, and she knew better than anyone just how sweet and innocent he could actually be at times. And she had been there for all the hurt Sophia had put him through. She had been enraged, furious, not with Sophia, but with herself. She was supposed to take care of him, and she hadn't. And Daniel had changed after that, hadn't gone back to dating hot women all the time. After Sophia he had stopped asking her to send flowers or jewelry to women whose names he couldn't remember. Most of his nights had been spent here, with her, going over Mode issues.

She reached her desk and was surprised to find the t-shirt and tickets she had thrown in the garbage lying in a heap on her chair. She stared down at it. It still hurt, that sting of rejection. She caught movement in the corner of her eye. From down the hall Daniel was waving an arm to get her attention. The look on his face was humorously impatient. She had to smile. Daniel usually could get her to smile even when she didn't want to. He let his arm fall to his side, but he was still watching her. She felt a shiver up her spine. She shook her head and looked back to the t-shirt. She couldn't take this too seriously. She knew Daniel. She wasn't his type. It was stress, his and hers. They could go to lunch like adults, have an adult a conversation about it, and they would both decide to let whatever it was be.

She picked up the t-shirt and the tickets and threw them in the garbage. Henry, at least, she had a definitive answer to. No more Henry. No more awkward moments in the hallway or in the elevator. She found that it didn't hurt as much as she had thought it would. She grabbed her coat and turned, to find Alexis standing next to her.

"Oh! Oh, hello. Can I help you with something?" She straightened her glasses, looking up at the much taller woman. Alexis smiled a smile Betty wasn't entirely comfortable with.

"So, the pretty little receptionist said Daniel and you have a business lunch, and that he'd see me after. Should I be worried?"

"Huh? What? Oh no, no. It's not- it's not anything like that. I was upset and Daniel, I think he's just taking me out to make me feel better." She gave the other woman a nervous smile, her hands gesturing wildly as she spoke. Alexis laughed softly.

"Well, when you get back from your little lunch date, let Danny know I have some ideas I want to talk to him about. And tell him mom is demanding that we come for dinner tonight." With a dramatic flick of her hair the leggy blond turned away and walked off. Betty watched her go. It still didn't seem fair that a man could look that good as a woman.

"Betty?" Daniel's voice, close to her ear, and she could feel the heat of him standing behind her. If she was going to be this aware of him from now on she was going to have to quit. She took a deep, steadying breath and turned to face him.

"Ready. I'm ready. I am." She smiled over her stuttered words. He smiled at her. She couldn't help but smile back.

…………………..

The elevator ride was awkward. Daniel couldn't help but look over at Betty, and Betty seemed intent on looking at the elevator door. He stuffed his hands in his pockets so that he wouldn't touch her in any way. She seemed like an animal that wanted to escape captivity. He cast a furtive glance from the corner of his eye.

He hadn't meant to scare her. He hadn't meant to kiss her. Truthfully he hadn't known he wanted to kiss her until he was too close to doing so for it to matter anymore. Oh he had an inkling of it ever since he kissed Hilda. That had been a mistake. He could still see Betty's face. And it still made him ashamed, something he didn't think anyone else could make him feel like Betty did. Betty had the incredible ability to make him feel like he could accomplish anything and also like he was somehow not reaching that potential. It was unnerving, and something he hadn't ever examined the meaning of until now. He had hurt her when he'd kissed her sister. He knew her sister had hurt her more, but he had seen the pain he'd caused in her eyes as she watched him pass her.

Beside him Betty cleared her throat and nervously adjusted her purse. He looked over and down at her.

"It's just lunch, Betty. I promise I'll save the ring for at least our second date." As soon as he said it he wished he hadn't. He forced himself to laugh. Betty was watching him with wide eyes behind her glasses. He gulped down a breath and rocked back slightly on his heels.

"Okay, not funny. Sorry. But really, it's just lunch. We can- talk. I can- I can talk. We can talk." He made a face, moving his left hand from his pocket to rub it over his face.

"Daniel, really. We don't have to talk about this. You don't have to take me out to lunch." She turned almost completely to face him, her tousled hair flying over her shoulder. He turned himself to face her, leaning down just a bit.

"Listen, whatever happened in the bathroom, I don't- I don't want to pretend that it didn't happen. And I could tell you that I was just comforting you, trying to make you feel better. But it would be a lie. I don't know what it was. I don't think I… ever… considered this before. So can we just go to lunch and talk?" He reached hand out to fix the flyaway hairs on her head. He smoothed her hair, which was softer than he would have thought, tucking it behind her ears and pushing her bangs to the side and out of her face. Her expression was an odd mixture of annoyance and sadness.

"Betty." His voice was firm and annoyance won over the look on her face.

He might have laughed, or even gotten aggravated by that expression, but he just kept looking at her until she conceded. She nodded her head slightly and turned back towards the elevator. The movement pulled her hair threw his finger and got them tangled there.

"Ow! Daniel!" She started to turn again, which only caused a lock of hair to get caught in his watch.

"Stop moving!" He growled, using his free hand to pull free the strands of her hair from his very expensive watch. He sighed; this wasn't going to be as easy as he had hoped it would be.

..…………………….

Lunch was eaten in relative silence. Betty had let Daniel order for mostly because she couldn't pronounce half of what was on the menu. Daniel had spoken for a while about the alliance he had made with Alexis, which reminded Betty that Alexis had requested to see her brother when they got back.

With lunch eaten and coffee steaming in front of them both they had no choice but to focus on each other. Betty watched Daniel carefully. He was nervous, constantly pulling at his tie until he had finally broken down and taken it off. He had run his hand over his face so many times that his nose was just a little bit red. He would look at her, give her a tight smile, and then look back at his plate. He had picked at his food like a bird, while Betty had gobbled most of hers down without tasting it. Now she regretted that, feeling like she might be sick any moment.

Daniel leaned forward and placed a hand on the table about half way to her. The movement startled her into meeting his gaze. His face was serious, the way it had been on the bridge that night. She knew he wanted her to take his hand, but found she couldn't. He left it there, but she could see his shoulders fall just a bit.

"What are you thinking?" He asked.

"I'm thinking this is crazy and we should just let it go. Honestly Daniel, whatever you think- whatever you think is happening." She paused and took a deep breath. "You are a very important friend to me. We are both under a lot of stress. I don't want this to happen and then have it be a mistake and not be friends. We work together, we need to have each other's backs, and we can't do something that will ruin that." This couldn't be happening. She still didn't see how he could be serious. "And honestly Daniel, you and me?" She shook her head and risked a look at him. He looked almost comically shocked.

…………………..

He hadn't expected that. What had he expected? For her to fall willingly into this, to see where it lead without any thought? Maybe. Maybe he had expected that. He had at least expected her to consider it. He had imagined she would be insecure and unsure of herself. He hadn't thought she would turn him down before he could even come up with an idea. The whole thing should have turned him off. He should have been realizing what a mistake this had been, this lunch and the kiss in the bathroom. But all he could do was watch her make her case, holding herself as steady as she could, and want to kiss her again. Was it stress? He looked at his outstretched hand on the table.

Yes he was stressed. Who wouldn't be, with their mother drinking again, their father in prison, and a brother who had returned from the dead as his sister? Discovering any feeling at all for his misfit assistant was the last thing he needed. But he felt better just at the thought of going through all of this with Betty. Not just as his assistant, but as his friend, and with the possibility of some deeper definition. Sophia had taught him something important. Humility, for one. He'd stopped dating around after that, no more one night stands. He had found himself spending more time at the office, not to avoid being lonely, but because he had ideas. He had good ideas, Betty had assured him on numerous occasions. But Sophia had also taught him that sometimes following a feeling, even if it led to hurt, was worth it. A silly lesson, one that most people learned sometime in their definitive teen years. But Daniel had never been most people. So it had taken him a while. As for Betty's concern, her incredulous disbelief at the idea of she and him, well he could understand that. She wasn't his type. Hilda was much more his type. He wondered if Betty was thinking about how he had kissed her sister. But Betty was beautiful in her own way, when she let herself be herself she was lovely. Her smile, despite the braces, was bright and genuine. And her eyes, behind those glasses, were bright and chocolate and warm. And underneath the layers of clothes she always wore the softness of her curves had felt right against him. He might not be sure of what he was feeling, but he knew he wanted to find out. He looked up at her.

She was staring. He had been silent for too long. His hand was still outstretched on the table. He smiled and she looked startled.

"Go on a date with me." He said. She rolled her eyes, and he wondered if she had picked that up from Amanda, and leaned back in her chair with a small huff that moved her bangs from her forehead.

"Daniel." She was going to protest.

"Didn't you once tell me I was an attractive, successful, intelligent guy?" She nodded begrudgingly. "Well what beautiful, sensible, intelligent woman wouldn't want to at least date an attractive, successful, intelligent guy? At least once?" He wiggled his fingers at her, and looked pointedly at her hand. "Well?"

"Why?" she demanded, ignoring his hand. He pulled it back, and took the napkin from his lap. He stood and walked to her side of the table, ignoring the quick glances of other diners.

"Because kissing you felt right, Betty, and I want to find out why. Now unless you were completely repulsed by my kiss then I see no reason not to try this. If anyone can come out of this as friends it's you and I. You are far too practical." He smiled as he kneeled down next to her chair and took one of her hands in his.

"Beautiful?" There was a rosy blush starting on her cheeks. He smiled in spite of himself.

"Yes." He looked at her. She looked around the room then looked back at him. "So will you go on a date with me? Or were you repulsed?"

"Yes, no, yes. I mean- no I wasn't repulsed, so yes, fine I will go on a date with you. But don't expect anything. I'm not one of those super-" He cut her off with his lips. He kissed her quickly and softly, so that she almost doubted he had done it all.

"Daniel." She scowled, looking scandalized.

"I'll pick you up tonight. At eight? Now I think we should get back to work. You said Alexis wanted to meet me?" He stood and made his way back to his chair, straightening his suit coat.

"Your mother wanted to go to dinner with you and Alexis tonight." She grumbled. He smiled widely at her.

"I can have dinner with her tomorrow." He answered.

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Authors Note II: I'm loving writing this. I hope I managed to keep character voices as they should be even while sticking them in situations we all know won't come around until the last season of the show. . I wanted to try an angle where they didn't freak just cause they felt something. I also wanted Daniel to be the initiator. A lot of fan fiction like having him freak out, or else immediately go for marriage and sex (though not always in that order). While those are probably more likely Daniel reactions, I like to think he's learning and growing with each new dramatic episode in his life. So we'll see how that goes. Let me know what you all think!


	3. Brothers and Sisters

Disclaimer: Same as always. I own: my cat. I have: no money. I make: no claim of ownership upon these characters, I just like letting them play in an alternate story line once in a while.

Author's Note: I am amazed at all the reviews! Thank you all so much for the encouragement to continue. As I am on a kick right now, and fan-girling out on the D/B ship, chapters will hopefully keep coming quickly. I'm really glad you are all enjoying. And I'm even 'gladder' that I'm not mangling the characters beyond recognition. Nothing is worse than truly OOC fanfiction.

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"Daniel! Daaaany-boy? Where is your head?!"

A smack to the back of the head brought Daniel back into the moment. Alexis stood next to him with an aggravated look on her face. He met her eyes, but immediately looked back down at the photo proofs he held in his hand.

"You'll have to get used to looking at me if this truce is going to work." Alexis said dryly. Daniel's eyes flitted nervously to her face, then past her face, back to her face, and finally rested somewhere just past her shoulder.

"I can. I can look at you. What are you- I can look at you." He stuttered. Alexis sighed.

"Sure you can, Danny."

"It's Daniel. Stop calling me Danny." He snapped, the words coming out harsher than he had intended them. He immediately looked contrite. He looked up at his sister. "I'm sorry. I'm trying. It's just-it's hard to hear you speak to me like my brother with that voice." Alexis looked down at the photos and then back up at Daniel.

"I'm still me. It's just that now the outside matches the inside. I know it's… a shock." She said, her eyes looking heavenward for a moment. Daniel watched the woman who had been his brother. She was right, he knew, but it was hard to get past the body. It was also hard to forgive the two years his family had spent mourning their lost older son. He swallowed hard and set the proofs down on the table, staring down at them. He tried to imagine his older brother standing next to him.

"I have a date tonight." He said.

"Huh?" He could almost see the confusion that would have been on Alex's face. He smiled and let out a little laugh.

"That's where my head is. You asked, didn't you?" He flipped to the next picture in the pile.

"It's just a date. You've never stressed dates before." Alexis' voice was a bit bitterer than he thought Alex's would be, but Daniel continued.

"The girl- she's different than anyone else I've dated. She makes me nervous. Women never make me nervous." The third picture looked so much like the second he almost thought he hadn't flipped it. He leaned over to examine it closer.

"Different… like that Sophia woman different?" Her voice was cautious, and Daniel could feel that she was playing along with his game. If he could just talk to her the way he might have talked to Alex about Betty, then maybe he could get over the voice and the body.

"No, not like Sophia. She's not a supermodel and she's not… cold. She looks out for me. I think it's been a long time since someone's looked out for me." Next picture, more of the same, he pushed it towards where Alexis stood a few feet from him but did not raise his eyes. Her hand reached out and took it. For the first time he didn't look away.

"I used to look out for you." Her voice was defensive, but not enough to make him walk away. He turned to a new picture.

"You used to, Alex, but then you died." And finally he looked up at her. He met her eyes and saw something he hadn't expected to see. Those were his brother's eyes looking back, still as blue as his and his mother's.

"I should go, I should get ready." Daniel handed the remaining photos to Alexis. "You can let me know what you think tomorrow. And we'll go to dinner with mom another night. Goodnight, Alexis." Daniel grabbed his suit jacket and walked to the door.

"If it's serious you should take your time, Danny. You tend to move too fast when you decide you really want something. She doesn't seem like the kind of girl who responds to that." Daniel looked back, but Alexis was looking at the pictures in her hands.

"How do you-?" His brow furrowed in confusion. Alexis laughed softly.

"There's only one person I can think of, I'm going on the assumption it's her. I could be wrong. I've been wrong before." She shrugged.

Daniel stared at her for a moment longer, and left the room.

………...

"Mom! More subdued! This is why I refused to let you take her to one of those crazy beauty shops you like so much. She needs to look fashion-world sophisticate, not Queens ghetto fabulous! This is Daniel Meade she's going out with. Not Walter." Betty watched warily as Justin took the brush from his mother's hand and ran it through her hair. He was shaking his head in frustration. Hilda's face was a picture of offense.

"Well excuse me, Mr. Fashionista!" She flicked a hand at him and turned to look at herself in the mirror. "You know Betty, are you sure you want to do this? I mean, this is your boss. And he's a playboy. I mean, you saw at Fashion Week-.."

"Hilda! Look, it's just one date. And I really don't want to talk about Fashion Week. Justin! Ow!" She swung her head around to see Justin back away a couple of steps, hands held up with a brush in one. She turned back to Hilda. "Look, I can get myself ready, okay? My hair is fine, and I'm pretty sure I can get myself in the clothes. Thank you both. Now out!" She flung a hand at the doorway, her finger pointing. Hilda rolled her eyes and put a hand on her hip, but she walked out muttering to herself. Justin took one last brave swipe at her hair and then followed his mother out.

Alone at last Betty looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair was smooth and shiny, half of it pinned up in a twist, with tendrils falling down her neck. Her bangs were pinned to the side of her face. She smiled slightly. It didn't look too bad, really, for her, anyway. She moved to the bed. Just twenty minutes ago it had been covered in clothing choices. What they, or rather Justin, had decided on was a dark blue dress that fell just below her knees, with a pale blue sash just below her breasts and long, draping sleeves. She put it on carefully over her head. She tried to reach back to tie the sash and found she couldn't reach. She sighed, she would have to call Hilda or Justin back in. She slipped on the high heels that she hadn't worn in over a year, and moved to the door. She threw it open and let out shriek of surprise to see her father standing in the doorway.

"Sorry, sweetheart. You're sister said you were losing it. I thought I'd come check on you." He leaned and looked around the room. "Doesn't look like you're losing it to me." He looked at her and raised his eyebrows. She gave him a small smile.

"I do need help tying my sash." She said, motioning to her back. He smiled at her and came into the room. He motioned for her to turn around and she did. He tied it for it. She turned around carefully.

"So what do you think, dad?" she asked, she raised her eyebrows questioningly and did a slow turn. He father stepped forward and put his hands on her arms.

"You look beautiful, mija." He smiled. "You look beautiful, just like your mother." She smiled, feeling her eyes tear up just for a moment. In a weird way it helped with the queasy feeling in her stomach. She moved to her bed and sat down. She took a deep breath, and tried to avoid rubbing her face. She didn't want to mess up the little bit of makeup that Hilda had put on her.

"Betty." Her father weight shifted on the bed. She felt the weight of his arm around her. She sighed and looked over at him.

"You don't look very happy about this date. Why are you going on it, if you don't want to?" He asked his voice low and serious. Betty sighed again.

"It's not that I don't want to. I don't know what I want. And that's really the problem. I mean, I just broke up with Walter two days ago, I found out Henry has a girlfriend today. And then all the sudden, Daniel… I don't know. It's not that I don't feel anything for him. It's that I know him too well! How many times have I had to clean up the messes he makes with women? And I know the Sophia thing changed him, but I don't- I don't want to go into this and then be caught off guard when he goes back to being Daniel-playboy-Meade." She looked at her father sitting next to her. He was watching her, knowing she wasn't finished. Her chest felt tight. She shook her head. "And I'm not the kind of girl he usually goes after. And that's what he's doing. Going after me. Me. Betty, plain and ugly Betty. Do you know what people would say? What is Daniel Meade doing with that ugly, frumpy girl who obviously has no fashion?" She looked away. Her father grabbed her chin and turned her face around.

"Listen to me. You are not ugly. You are who you are, mija, and that is beautiful. Never doubt that. I know the boys have always made a big deal out of Hilda, and I know that's jut help you to make these assumptions about yourself. But you are lovely, Betty." He put his hands together in front of him, his head nodding as if he was thinking something to himself. "Now about Daniel, well, you need to decide if it's a risk you want to take. He's got a lot of learning to do. But he's not a bad man. It might be worth it. And it seems to me that him being interested in you is a sure sign of better things to come from him." With a deep breath and a squeeze of her shoulder he stood. "Finish getting ready, sweetheart." He left the room and closed the door behind him.

Betty stood and walked to the mirror. She stared at her face, it looked different without her glasses, though she would have to put those on before she left. Maybe she could get to the restaurant with them. She smiled a little at herself. This was silly; Daniel knew what she looked like with her glasses on. But then, if that were the whole truth of it, then why should she have bothered letting Hilda do her makeup, or Justin choosing a new outfit, or letting both of them attack her hair. To their credit, she didn't know how they'd gotten it so glossy looking. No, she had to admit, even to herself, that she did want Daniel to see her as beautiful. He had said she was, but she wanted to be able to believe that. She slipped her glasses into her purse and put it on her shoulder. She gave herself a quick once over and then opened the door.

As if on cue the bell rang. She heard Hilda and Justin fighting over the door, and Ignacio overruling them both to answer it himself. She took a deep and steadying breath, and then headed down the stairs. She made it to the bottom, Daniel was sitting on the couch, with Justin crowded in next to him. It startled her how comfortable he looked with her family. She stopped and stared for a moment. He looked good, in a dark blue suit with a white shirt and no tie. He was handsome. She'd always known that, but seeing him now was different. She smiled in spite of herself.

He must have felt her eyes on him, because he turned to look at the staircase. His eyes widened and he stood, ungracefully, from the couch. His feet tangled in Justin's and he stumbled just a bit before righting himself. He grinned nervously, one hand going to his neck to rub it.

"Betty." She didn't recognize the voice he greeted her with, but it caused wild butterflies in her stomach. She smiled.

"Daniel." He looked like he wanted to say something. She waited, but when he said nothing, she took the remaining steps to him. She smiled up at him.

"You look… beautiful." He took a deep shuddering breath. Her smile widened, and she felt a flush reach her cheeks. She ducked her head sheepishly.

"Thank you Daniel. You, you look good too." She met his eyes briefly, then looked past him to the living room where her family was watching. "Have a good night." She looked up at Daniel. "Can we go now?" He started as if she had startled him.

"Yes. Yes. Let's go." He turned to her family and smiled. "Goodnight." He turned back to Betty and gestured for her to go out the door.

…………………….

Daniel stepped out into the cool night air and took a deep breath. The cool air calmed his hammering heart. He looked at Betty, who was below him on the sidewalk. She looked up at him, her eyes shining in the streetlight. She really was breathtaking tonight. How could he have never noticed it before? Well, he was sure the dowdy clothes helped. A lot. He smiled at her.

"You look different." He said as he descended the stairs to stand in front of her. He barely even thought of how he had stood out here with Sophia once. With Betty in front of him, her breath misting in the cold air, it was hard to think of Sophia.

"Better?" She asked. It was light hearted, but he could hear the test in it. She smiled wider.

"No, not better. You look different. And you look good." He took a step closer to her and put a hand near her throat, his fingers toying with the tendrils of hair that spilled down her neck. "Although this dress is nothing compared to the poncho." He said softly, with a small grin. To his relief she smiled and let out a little laugh.

"Would mind if I…?" He leaned in close to her, but stopped short of kissing her. His heart beat echoed in his ears, and even in the cold his hands were warm. He half expected her to pull away. But she shook her head just the slightest bit.

"I wouldn't mind." She whispered, and he could here the shaking in her voice.

"Good." He said softly, before kissing her softly. He pulled away just a few seconds later.

"I think we're doing it backwards." She said, her voice gravelly. She cleared her throat and looked up at him. His brow furrowed in confusion.

"What?" She smiled at him.

"The kiss is supposed to happen at the end of the date. You're doing it backwards." She smiled wider. "But I think there's something appropriate about that." He laughed at that and took her hand in his.

"Shall we go?" At her nod he led her to the town car, opening the door for her. With a deep breath he followed her into the car. This was already going easier than the lunch had. He smiled to himself. And then he smiled at her as he sat beside her.

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Authors Note: I wanted to get further. But then I said, ehhhh let me take my time and do it as it feels right. It won't all go this slow. Eventually I will skip ahead a bit of time, to keep the story moving. But I'm at least going to get through the date and the next morning before I do any of that. I have no idea how long this thing will be. I hope I did the characters justice. Whew, it's hard! Thanks for reading.


	4. The Date

Disclaimers: The usual. I don't own it. If I did then this would actually be happening in the show (only it would be better written, I'm sure) and I wouldn't have to write about it in the first place.

Author's Note: And so the date continues. I have to say that it is hard to try to keep everyone in character. I write a section, then read it and say 'no no no Betty wouldn't say it like that' and then re-write it and then re-read the whole thing and… etc etc etc. But I am loving writing this.

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Dinner was going much better than Betty had thought it would. There was no awkwardness, no searching for conversation. Daniel was at his ease in this environment. Dating he knew and she could see it just looking at him. Whatever nervousness he had been feeling when he first came to pick her up had gone. She could see it in the way he ordered their wine, and suggested what they should order. He'd stopped rubbing the back of his neck, and his face, and he no longer tried to loosen a tie that was not there. But more than all of that he seemed sincere. In between talking there were moments of silence when he just looked at her with a smile playing on his lips. After the fourth or fifth such pause she put her fork down and tilted her head to look at him.

"What?" she asked.

"I've never been on a date with a friend before. In fact, I don't think I've ever really had a woman friend ever." He took a sip of his wine. She considered him for a moment, watched the way his lips touched the glass, the way the light of the restaurant played in his eyes. She could be taken in by him, if she wasn't careful. She found that, now that she was entertaining such thoughts, she didn't mind them so much.

"I think there's supposed to be a rule, about not dating friends." She replied with a bright smile. He laughed, his eyes wandering the restaurant. Then he returned his gaze to her, his face serious.

"I never even thought about it until this morning. It's funny how things work that way." He put his napkin down and pushed back his chair. Betty wondered what he was doing, but she stayed in her chair and watched him as he made his way over to her and held out a hand.

"Dance with me?" His lips curled into the slightest of smiles. Betty grinned at him and took his hand, letting him help her out of her chair. She walked close beside him as they made their way to the wide open dance floor. There weren't that many couples. He walked to the middle and pulled her close to him, taking one hand in hers and putting his other hand on her hip. She put her free arm on his shoulder and followed his lead as they began to move. He was more graceful then she would have thought, but there was still something decidedly awkward and Daniel-like about it. She let herself relax and follow his movements.

…………………

Daniel took her home after dinner. Not because he didn't want to spend more time with her, but because he was pretty sure that Alexis was right. Pushing Betty would only scare her. And if he was honest with himself, he too needed to take it slowly. So they sat together on her stoop in the crisp, cold air with it's feeling of impending snow. They had been talking for sometime. But now there was a comfortable silence between then as they sat the cold, but thankfully dry steps.

"How did it go with Alexis earlier?" She asked suddenly. She looked up at him, the loose hair around her face blowing into her eyes. He shrugged and looked forward.

"It wasn't as bad as it could have been. It's still weird, you know? Thinking about it being Alex in that body. I don't know. Maybe he… or she… was right. Maybe I am just like my father." She looked at him, and he felt compelled to return the gaze.

"You are not like your father. I mean, not that I know your father all that well. But you wouldn't wish your brother dead instead of… well... becoming… your sister." She made a face. "There really is not good way to say that." She shrugged. He laughed a little.

"You know, I would imagine what it would be like if my brother came back." He shook his head. "I never imagined it to be like this."

"But it must be nice, either way, to have him back. I know that with your father in jail, and your mother kind… well…. anyway. I mean, at the end of the day you have to look at the bright side. And the bright side is that Alex did come back." She turned to face him, and he put an arm around her. The wind, cold and bitter, blew her hair into her face. It was biting cold; Daniel could feel it through his jacket. Under his arm Betty shivered. He let her go just long enough to pull his jacket open and wrap her up in it with him. She laughed, looking up at him. He pulled her in closer, reveling in the shared heat of their bodies against the cold.

"You should probably go inside soon. It's cold." He told her, throwing a look to the door behind them, where lights were still on in the house.

"Not yet, Daniel. A couple more minutes and it'll start snowing." She was looking up at the sky, but all he could look at was her. She was so amusingly innocent sometimes. With sudden doubt he thought that maybe he should just leave her be. Even if he did figure out what he was feeling he was no good for someone like Betty. She needed someone to have meaningful conversations with, who understood her. But then, following that thought where it naturally led to, he realized they had no problem finding things to talk about. And he did understand her. Betty let out a delighted gasp next to him. He looked down at her, but she was looking up still. And in her dark eyelashes were fresh snow flakes. It had indeed begun to snow. He smiled at her and then turned his head up to watch the snow fall down.

……………..

Betty was buried in paper work. Daniel had left to have lunch with his mother and Alexis, for which she was thankful. She was sure he was trying to distract her on purpose. She sighed, moving a pile of papers from one side of her desk to the others, then taking a pile that was on top of her keyboard and moving it to where the first pile had been.

"Long night last night?" A feminine voice said from behind her. She turned and was shocked to see Alexis standing behind her.

"I'm sorry, what?" She asked, turning back to the papers and starting to move them again, even though she'd just gotten them where she wanted them.

"Your date? With Daniel?" Alexis took the pile of papers that Betty was holding in front of her as if to use as a shield. She raised an eyebrow at Betty, an amused smile lifting the corner of her lip.

"It wasn't- we didn't. I mean we didn't." Betty took a deep breath, readjusted her glasses and snatched the papers away from Alexis. "I thought you were out to Lunch with your mother and Daniel." Alexis' smile widened, but let Betty's subject switch go.

"Oh I was. We just got back. Daniel and mother will be coming along any moment now." She glanced behind her to where, as if she had known they were there, Daniel and their mother were walking up behind them. Daniel smiled at Betty. Betty lowered her eyes, not daring to raise them again.

"Betty." There was just the slightest question in his voice. But she ignored it.

"How was your lunch?" She looked up and found that the only one she could make eye contact with was Daniel's mother, who at least at the moment was sober and seemingly unaware of last nights events. She was giving Betty one of her searching looks.

"They wouldn't let me drink. Not a drop. They ganged up on me. Like I'm a misbehaving child." She leaned forward to examine Betty's face. "You've been using the moisturizer we picked up from the spa. It's working... well wonders is too strong a word. We'll just say it's working." Betty felt her face heating up and Daniel's look slightly outraged.

"Mother." His mother turned and looked at him, raising both eyebrows in question.

"What? Why are you getting so agitated?" She asked. She looked to Alexis for an answer when Daniel didn't provide one.

"He's upset that you are insulting the woman he's dating, mom." Alexis answered, a sly smile coming upon her lips, looking for all the world like a big brother torturing his little brother. Betty began to wish the floor would open up and swallow her whole. Daniel was glowering at his sister, his mother looked so shocked that Betty wasn't sure if she was still breathing or not, and Alexis looked like the proverbial cat that got the canary. Finally, as Betty had known she would, Daniel's mother found her voice.

"You're dating her?!" She shrieked, facing Daniel but pointing one perfectly manicured finger at Betty. Then she began laughing. Betty wasn't sure if the outrage or the amusement was worse. Her face felt like it was burning. Was her skin melting? She ran a hand over her forehead, pushing her bangs to the side. Nope, skin still intact. Then she was acutely aware of Daniel looking at her. And after that, came the awareness that everyone on the floor was looking at her.

"Mrs. Meade, I don't know what made Ale-." She began to speak, but she wasn't sure if her voice was loud enough because Daniel started talking over her.

"So what if I am, mother? Bad enough you spent lunch pointing out hot guys to Alex, do you need to get involved in my love life now too?" His hands were on his hips, always a sure sign that he was ready for a fight. Betty shook her head. There were gasps from down the hallway, but Betty couldn't bear to look. She turned wide eyes from Daniel and his mother to Alexis who was watching her intently. The smile the other woman gave her was actually sympathetic. Betty couldn't understand. Alexis shrugged her shoulders in response to Betty's questioning look. Betty was brought back into the conversation as she heard her name.

"Betty is a wonderful-." Daniel began, but his mother interrupted him.

"Wonderful assistant, not girlfriend! Good lord, Daniel, as if we don't have enough publicity! They'll think you've lost your mind, dating her!" At this Daniel advanced on his mother, running one hand over his face. Betty could practically feel the weight of the silence of the people down the hall. Oh please, she thought, please let Amanda be on lunch.

"Lunch is over mother. I'm sure Alexis would love to see you back home. I'll talk to you later." He started to move past her. He hadn't looked at Betty since the whole thing had started and Betty wondered if she should think more of that than she currently did. But Daniel's mother was looking at her.

"Are you really dating my son? You seem like you have more sense then that. But I know he can be charming. He's his father's son." She cast a glance at Daniel, who was standing near his office door, clearly waiting for his family to be gone. Betty took a deep breath.

"Whether I'm dating him or not has nothing to do with sense, Mrs. Meade. But maybe you should look at Daniel and for once not see Mr. Meade standing in front of you. And Alexis, you can't expect him to treat you like his adult sister with whom he is sharing control of a major magazine when you're tattling like a child." Rummaging up what little dignity she had left she turned back to her desk and sat down to her work.

"Come on, mom, I'll take you home." Betty could see from the corner of her eye as Alexis herded Mrs. Meade away. She dared a look at Daniel, who to her great surprise had a small smile playing on his face. He suddenly shifted his glare to those who had stayed in the hallway once Mrs. Meade and Alexis had passed. Betty heard the clacking of heels and the scurrying of bodies but could not make herself look to see who had overheard. Daniel looked back at her.

"You want to come in?" He motioned to his office. She shook her head.

"I think right now I should stay right here and keep working." He looked like he wanted to argue, but he nodded his head instead.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Fine, Daniel." She answered. He didn't look satisfied with the answer but he let it be and went into his office. She let loose a big sigh. Now if she could just make it through the rest of the day.

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Author's Note: Sorry for the long delay. I'm a Nanny by day and the little boy I watch is teething, which makes for a long and tedious work day. So I've had no energy to write this. So it's a little shorter than the others. But the new one should come up soon! Hope you all enjoy. There will eventually be longer and kinder interaction between Daniel's Mother/Alexis/Betty. But for now, there it is. Please review and let me know what you think!


	5. Caught

Disclaimer: Standard. I own nothing except my cat, and sometimes I think she owns me. I give massive kudos to the people who put Ugly Betty into my living room (almost) every Thursday.

Author's Note: I never understood when people said they live for reviews. Now I do. It's always nice to know what people think, what their favorite parts are, and whether they are enjoying it. So thank you to everyone who reviews, I hope more people do. I'm glad you are enjoying reading this. There is much D/B loving going on in this chapter. Why? Because no new Ugly Betty last week and I need something to get me through.

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Betty's prayer was answered. Amanda was out to lunch when Claire Meade had made a spectacle of herself and Betty. But Marc hadn't been. And it had taken all the time of dialing seven little numbers for him to tell her what had happened. Betty, in an attempt to survive the day, had hidden in the Closet with Christina. But that could only last for so long. Christina had eventually told her she was going to have to walk past Amanda in the morning anyways, so she might as well get it done with now. Betty's response of coming in two hours early and leaving two hours late was met with a sardonic grin and a hand pointed towards the elevator. Grumbling Betty had returned to Mode offices.

Amanda ignored her. She couldn't figure out if this was a blessing or a curse. Chances were it meant she'd get much more under the radar attacks from the woman. But the day passed, and nothing. Betty sighed in relief when Amanda left for the day, not realizing how tense she had been holding herself. Some of the lights had been turned off by the cleaning crew, leaving the office with only soft lighting. She sat back in her chair and spun it once slowly. As her spin ended she found herself facing Daniel, who was leaving his office for the first time since Alexis and his mother had left. He smiled at her. She smiled back.

"Amanda finally left." She said by way of explanation. The look of confusion on his face was brief and followed by a wide grin.

"Did she- did she say something?" His hand was reaching around to rub his neck.

"No. No. She mostly just glared at me when I wasn't looking and ignored me when I was. I'm sure she doesn't believe it. She's probably just mad that the attention was on me." Betty shrugged and left her chair, standing to gather her things. "Honestly, I was just waiting for her to go home so I could leave in peace." She looked up and caught the look of disappointment on his face. She gave him a questioning glance.

"I was thinking that maybe you were waiting to talk to me. I was going to call you into my office, but… uh… I didn't think you'd want that." He shrugged.

"Daniel, what happened with your mother- that was a reasonable reaction to the idea of you and me. She's right. If those fashion TV people see us, can you imagine what they'll say?" She was shaking her head, but stopped as it pulled her stiff muscles. She really hadn't realized how tense she had been. She sighed. When she looked up again Daniel was standing next to her.

"I really don't care what the people at fashion TV have to say. I might have, a few months ago. Now, it just doesn't seem that important. But if you- if you really don't want to do this…" His shoulders were hunched up and he was watching the floor. She put a hand on his arm.

"I didn't say that." He looked visibly relieved. "Last night was nice. Despite my reservations, which I still have, I had a good time." She smiled at him.

"Well let me give you a ride home, since it's my fault you're here so late." He picked up her coat and held it out for her. Betty looked at him for a moment. He looked tired, and his hair was in all directions. A sure sign that in his agitation he'd been pulling his hands through it. It reminded her of finding him hiding in his bedroom closet and she laughed. He looked mockingly offended.

"What is so funny?" He asked. She stopped giggling.

"I was thinking about you in your closet, after Sophia." Her smile left her face, maybe bringing up Sophia wasn't the best idea. She cringed a little, but Daniel only smiled and motioned for her to let him get her coat on her. She moved close to him and put her arm in.

"Sorry." She said quietly. She jumped when his lips touched her cheek.

"It really doesn't bother me anymore, Betty." She turned her head to look at him. Their lips were inches apart and he was smiling. She looked nervously from his lips to his bright blue eyes. She could hear herself swallow and wondered if he could too.

"Are you sure?" She whispered. He leaned in closer and her heart seemed to triple in speed. He nodded slightly and then closed the distance between them. His kisses, Betty realized, were nothing like she would have thought they'd be. Not that she could admit to thinking of what kissing him would be like before that first time. Well, maybe once or twice after she caught him kissing Hilda.

He was soft with her, and hesitant. He wasn't pushy like she would have imagined. And he often smiled into their kisses. His left hand was tracing light patterns on her neck before moving to tangle in her hair. And the other still held onto the sleeve of the coat not yet on her. She moved her body closer, feeling the warmth of him against her. He pulled away just the slightest bit from her lips.

"Betty." Just her name, whispered. A breath across her lips. She sighed and met his lips again. He bit lightly at her lower lip, and then ran his tongue along the bites he left there. She felt a surge all over her body and shivered, which brought a low moan from Daniel. Without thought she opened her mouth to his and relished in the taste of him. His arms moved around her and pulled her to him. Her hands, of their own accord, were winding their way around his neck. She had to stand on the tips of her toes to reach around him. She had a brief thought of how ridiculous they must look, her with half her coat on and being so much shorter than he was. But that thought was cast away by the way he was deepening their kiss, and the way one hand had moved to her hip. She could feel the warmth of his palm on her hip.

………..

Daniel felt Betty's fingers run through the short hair at the back of his neck. It caused an instant reaction in him, that he hadn't necessarily expected to have to Betty, no matter how attracted to her he might be. He moved away from her just a bit to hide it from her, but she moved with him and against him. She was so much more responsive to him than he had thought she would be. He had thought she would be shy and reserved. It made him bolder, much bolder than he would have been with Betty. He turned them around and backed them up, slowly, carefully, until he had her back against the wall. She made a surprised gasp, but only dug her fingers lightly into his shoulder. The hand in his hair tightened slightly.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he should stop, before he pushed things further than Betty was comfortable with. But he'd sat in his office most of the day, thinking of ways to persuade her into not ending this before it even really began. He'd known that the opinions of other people wouldn't be positive. But he also hadn't thought his mother would be so blunt about it. He should have known, really. He'd been a bit naive.

He moved his lips away from Betty's lips, which were delightfully swollen now, and moved his kisses toward her ear, across her jaw and down her neck. She smelled good, not like perfume, but like Betty. Her coat fell to the floor with a soft sound. She was boneless against him, unresisting to his hands, which roamed her back and sides. He could hear her breath hitch with each kiss he set upon her neck.

Suddenly she stood up straight, her hands pushing him away from her with frantic motions. He moved his head up to look at her, but she was looking behind his shoulder. She'd stopped pushing at him and simply stood, as far away as she could with the wall at her back. He stood up straight, took his time to adjust his shirt and tie, then turned to see who had interrupted them.

He hadn't expected it to be her. Sophia, looking beautiful and perfectly put together. His anger was immediate.

"What are you doing on this floor?" he demanded. She smiled indulgently at him, as if he were a child throwing a temper tantrum.

"Daniel, it's been a while. With everything that's going on I didn't expect to find you here." She answered.

"That's not a reason for being on this floor." He replied, this time keeping the agitation from his voice. Betty was standing timidly behind him. He wished she wouldn't. She shouldn't be intimidated by Sophia. Or was she embarrassed?

"I was dropping off some papers to Alexis about an article I wanted to write about her for MYW. She wasn't sure if she wanted to, so I thought I would bring some of our issues up for her to read." She waved the papers in her hand in front of Daniel's face. He snatched them before she could pull them back.

"I'll make sure my bro- sister gets them." He made his expression as dismissive as possible. But she just smiled at him, and then around him to Betty.

"It's good to see you moving on, Daniel. Although I have to admit I didn't see you moving on to Betty." She moved to the left just enough so that she could address Betty.

"But I have to say, Betty, I wouldn't have thought this of you. Although it does explain why you quit so suddenly." Daniel looked over his shoulder at Betty. Her cheeks were red, but she stood straight with her shoulders squared.

"I didn't quit because of this." She made a motion between herself and Daniel. "I quit because you lied. And you used me. And you used Daniel, and he was my friend." Betty took a couple of advancing steps. "I don't want you comforting yourself by thinking that I only quit because I had feelings for Daniel. I quit because you're a fake. And so is your magazine." Betty, with all the dignity of a queen, bent over to pick up her jacket. She didn't look at Sophia again. She looked only at Daniel. He found himself wanting to kiss her again. He smiled at her, then looked at Sophia.

"I'll make sure Alex gets these." He reached past her and grabbed Betty's purse from her desk. He turned back to Betty, handing it to her. "I'm just going to grab the Book, and then I'll get you home." He ignored Sophia altogether as he disappeared back into his office.

……………..

Left alone with Sophia Betty felt herself deflate a bit. She knew she was a better person than Sophia. She would never use someone the way that she had. But looking at her, it was hard to see why Daniel would go from Sophia to her. She held her coat in front of her like armor.

"Betty." Sophia's voice was pitched low, as is they would conspire together. Betty cast a glance at her, then looked back to the office door.

"Betty, Betty, Betty. I know you don't agree with what I did. But trust me; it was time for Daniel to know what it feels like to be one of his conquests." Sophia leaned comfortably against Betty's desk.

"What you did was wrong." Betty said fiercely. She looked again at the other woman. There was a sympathetic smile playing on her lips.

"I guess he didn't learn his lesson that well. Betty, you must know that you shouldn't trust him. I don't know why he's doing this to you but-." Betty turned to face her.

"Doing what? Dating his ugly, plain, pathetic assistant?" She was silent for a moment but Sophia didn't respond so she continued. "You act like you know him, but you don't. You don't and you didn't, and sadly for you, you never will. And you don't know me either. What goes on, or doesn't go on, between Daniel and I is none of your business. And if Alexis is smart, she won't have anything to do with you either. And you can bet Daniel will tell her that." She might have continued, but she noticed Daniel standing in the doorway and stopped. He looked oddly sad, until he realized she was looking at him. Then a soft smile broke out on his face.

"I'm ready if you are Betty." He gestured for her and she walked over to him. With the Book under one arm he took Betty's hand in his free one. "Sophia." He gave her a brief nod and then started guiding Betty away. His hands were sweaty, but she didn't care. She gripped his tightly, trying to hold on to the small amount of self esteem she had left.

…………….

Daniel sighed in relief when the elevator doors shut. Betty still had a hard grip on his hand, but he wasn't inclined to let go. He spent a quiet moment trying to put together what he wanted to say to her.

"You aren't pathetic. You aren't plain or ugly. And you aren't just my assistant. And no matter what she alluded to, I'm not just doing this to… to… you know." He looked down at her. She returned his gaze, looking even more exhausted then she had before. She slid against the wall and let her head fall of his arm.

"Good. Here I was thinking you were just trying to get into my pants." She laughed lightly and he joined her. It was good she was keeping her sense of humor. "It's fine Daniel. Sophia can only bother me so much." She let go of his hand and wrapped her arm in his.

"You were right though, she didn't know me. But you do." He felt her brown eyes on him, but kept looking ahead. "She doesn't know you either."

"The only person I've had sex with was Walter." She blurted out, pulling away from him suddenly. The subject change left him foundering.

"What?" He managed to get out.

"I just, I mean, up there we were-. And then Sophia- she. I mean, I'm just not. I'm not experienced. There's just… there was just Walter. Before." She was looking at the floor. He was glad, because he couldn't keep the smile off his face and he didn't want her to see it. He walked over to her, his hands shoved deep in his pockets. He waited until she finally looked up at him.

"I don't care. When we- if we- get there, I don't care. Don't let her make you think things that you know aren't true. You know that's not what I'm doing here. And I know you know it. If you even thought it, you would never agree to this." She nodded her head.

"I just- I just wanted you to know." She said. He reached out and pulled her to him. She gave with just a little resistance.

"Don't worry about that." He said into her hair, kissing the top of her head. "Don't worry about anything." Her arms came around his waist.

They waited quietly for the elevator to reach the bottom. They didn't really speak as they got into the town car, either. And halfway between Manhattan and Queens they both fell into a light doze, Betty with her head on Daniel's shoulder, and Daniel with his head resting on hers.

………………………………………………………………………………...

Author's Note: Last week wiped me out; this week is looking to do the same. I'm glad I got this done and can get it up. Please read AND review! Let me know what you think of this part. Unlike the other sections, it was written as it came to mind. There was no real plan-ahead. So I hope it's good. I'll get more up soon!


	6. Elevators and Newspapers

Disclaimer: I don't own it. If I did there would be new episodes every Thursday without interruption. And Daniel and Betty wouldn't have to wait season upon season upon season to finally get together.

Author's Note: I'm glad everyone liked the last chapter. Re-reading it, I realized there were parts I would like to add. But then I decided to leave it be. At first I was going to have Henry catch them, but decided I would have Henry find out another way. I'm trying not to make the road too easy for them, but I also don't see the need in making super difficult. In my opinion, Betty and Daniel always fight together. So despite the issues they face, I don't see them attacking each other. It's a slight pet peeve I have with some fanfiction, that they don't have each other's backs. That's all they have!

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

Betty closed the door tightly behind her and shoved her pale blue, knit cap onto her head. She turned to start down the steps and stopped.

"I told you not to!" She shouted to him. Daniel, leaning against the car with two lidded cups of coffee in his hands shrugged. He motioned her towards the car, as the driver opened the door.

"I must not have heard you." He replied as he waited for her to reach him. She stomped her way over, and stood in front of him.

"You can not pick me up for work, Daniel." She said, though she took the hot cup of coffee when he offered it. It warmed her fingers and smelled delicious. She looked up at Daniel, but he was looking towards her house.

"Daniel!" He turned to look at her, his blue eyes sparkling with amusement.

"I can and I did." He replied, then slid easily into the backseat of the car. Betty rolled her eyes, her lips pursing in annoyance. The driver was waiting for her to get in, so she hurried to do so. Daniel was sipping his coffee nonchalantly. He smiled at her as she sat beside him, though she kept a proper distance between them.

"Look, just because I agreed to the dating thing does not mean that I want or expect special treatment! What are they going to think at work if they see us coming in together?" She demanded. The coffee sloshed dangerously in her hand and some spilled out onto the lid. She drank it off carefully.

"They'll think, 'there are Daniel Meade and his assistant.'. Betty, relax. I won't do it often, but let me do it once in a while okay? After the day we had yesterday I thought it would be nice to have a quiet morning ride." He motioned her closer. She stared at him for a moment and then scooted next to him. He smiled. "See? Not so bad." He rested his arm above her on the seat.

"Only once in a while." She said. She took a sip of coffee. It was almost too hot, but not quite. She was aware of his arm sinking lower until it came to rest on her shoulders. She considered saying something but decided not to. She found herself looking at his hand, stretched out over her shoulder. His nails were neat and clean, the fingers were gently bent to cup her shoulder. He must have caught her looking, because suddenly his fingers wiggled in her face. She smiled up at him. He smiled back.

…………………..

Daniel was sure the day couldn't go any slower. Alex was full of good-natured teasing, which Daniel could have handled if it hadn't been for her blurting out to their mother about his date with Betty. As it was, he managed to grit his teeth and bare it, and Alex kept shooting him puppy dog looks, like he was hurting her feelings by not laughing with her. The whole situation was unnerving all the more because he still couldn't quite get used to looking at his brother in a woman's body.

When lunchtime finally rolled around he all but bolted out of his office to grab Betty and take her out with him. He hadn't noticed that she had company at her desk. The accounting guy, Henry that was his name and a girl he could only assume was this Henry's girlfriend, were standing next to Betty. She was looking decidedly uncomfortable. She didn't see him coming out of the office because she was fidgeting with papers on her desk.

"Charlie thought it would be nice to ask you to lunch." Henry was saying. The girl beside him, cute in a very generic way, was smiling widely.

"You're the only person Henry's talked about outside of the accounting office. And I don't know anybody in New York. So I pushed him to come up here and ask you to lunch." She said in such a cheery voice that Daniel wondered if she were on something.

"I don't think I can." Betty stopped picking at the papers on her desk and finally looked up, pushing her glasses up onto her nose, with a nervous smile that was just a bare show of her teeth. She caught sight of Daniel as he was coming up behind Henry and the girl. She smiled and seemed to not realize she had done so. Henry turned to face Daniel, a look of confusion behind his glasses. Daniel smiled smoothly.

"Sorry to interrupt. I was just coming to grab Betty up for our lunch." He left the word 'date' off his sentence, but he sent a look Betty's way that left no doubt as to how he meant it. She blushed prettily. Henry frowned, and the girl kept on smiling, oblivious to what was going on around her.

"Oh, are you Betty's boyfriend? We could all go to lunch together! Unless you have something romantic planned, just the two of you?" The girl turned back to Betty with a questioning glance. It shocked Betty out of her stupor. She started stuttering.

"He's not Betty's boyfriend." Henry said, sounding a bit harsher than Daniel would have expected him to. His eyebrows raised, and Henry had the decency to look abashed. "That is, I mean, this is Daniel Meade, Editor in Chief of Mode Magazine. Betty is his- his assistant." He looked as if he wanted to look back at Betty, but didn't. Daniel smiled lazily. He directed his answer towards Charlie, but his eyes stayed on Henry's.

"Actually, Charlie was it? Actually I do have something special planned for Betty and I. Maybe you could catch her up for lunch another day." He looked at Charlie, who was finally looking confused. She smiled when he looked at her.

"Okay. Sorry. It's very nice to meet you Mr. Meade." She turned back to Betty. "Betty, maybe we can go out another time?" Betty nodded dumbly, but she was staring at Daniel. He moved around Henry and his girlfriend and grabbed Betty's jacket.

"Betty?" He held it out to her. She moved to him, and let him help her with it. She was staring at him with a dumbfounded look on her face. He smiled. He hoped she wouldn't be angry. Maybe he shouldn't have made such a spectacle. He reached over and grabbed her purse for her and put it in her hand. With a small nod to Henry and Charlie, he put his arm around Betty and started towards the elevator.

He probably shouldn't have his arm on her. He knew she was nervous about what the office would say, knew she didn't want to confirm what Alex had said yesterday. But at the moment he didn't care. What he did care about was getting her away from that Henry guy. He was not jealous. He just didn't want her to get hurt. Not that it bothered him that Henry could hurt her. No, not at all. Daniel Meade did not get jealous. No. He didn't notice that he tightened his grip on her just a bit.

……………..

Betty was stunned. She wasn't sure if she was annoyed with Daniel, or grateful. She really had been uncomfortable. It was painful to see Henry with Charlie. But it was a lot less painful than it should have been. She hadn't seen him since that morning when he had given her both tickets to Wicked. But since then so much had been happening, everything with Daniel, that she hadn't really thought about him much.

Daniel's arm was firm around her shoulder. He was leading her down the corridor, past Amanda's desk and to the elevators. Some part of her wanted to pull away. She really didn't want to confirm to Amanda that she and Daniel were dating. And the way he was holding on to her left no doubt as to that. It wasn't a friendly arm steering his assistant away for a lunch meeting. She ducked her head as they went past Amanda's desk and stood in front of the elevators. She didn't want to see the woman's face. She could already hear the whispers of the people in the corridor behind them. Why did they all have to care so much?

Daniel was silent. She didn't know if that was a good thing or not. She chanced a look up at him, but he was staring at the elevator doors. Finally they opened. She breathed a sigh of relief that they were empty. They stepped in together and Betty caught a glimpse of Amanda's disbelieving expression. Amanda's eyes met her and narrowed. Then the door closed. Daniel's grip lessened just a bit.

"I thought you needed rescuing." Daniel's voice was deep and harsher than normal. Betty looked up at him, confused. "I wasn't thinking. Are you angry?" He looked down at her then, worry in his bright eyes. It softened whatever anger she had been feeling.

"I wish you wouldn't have done that where Amanda and every other secretaries and assistant could see." She replied carefully. He moved his hand from around her shoulders. "But it's not like Alexis didn't blurt it out yesterday. I'm going to have to deal with them eventually, if this dating Daniel Meade thing is going to work out." She smiled at him and leaned into him. He looked wary.

"What about Henry?" he asked. She stood up straight and turned to face him. He was trying to look nonchalant. His hands where back in his pockets and he was looking around the elevator like it held some interesting mystery he hadn't figured out yet.

"What about him? He has a girlfriend. And that bothers me less than I thought it would." she answered. He couldn't be jealous. What did Daniel Meade have to be jealous of an accountant? She shook her head.

"So you don't mind if he thinks we're together?" Daniel asked. He looked at her again, finally. She smiled.

"Well it's fine if he thinks it as long as it's true. I think it's true. So I guess it's fine that he thinks it is. Or should I say knows it is?" She tried not to smile but couldn't help it. He watched her for a moment.

"As long as you don't mind." Was his reply.

…………………

Betty tried to cook dinner, but she couldn't seem to manage more than burning it. She couldn't seem to concentrate on anything. Her head was somewhere else, somewhere with Daniel. She couldn't remember mooning over Walter like this. Not even in the beginning. And at least her dreams of Henry had stayed in her sleep. But Daniel permeated everything.

Standing in the elevator with him, she had been shocked to realize that Henry had made him jealous. She hadn't expected him to. Some part of her, she realized, had been waiting for him to come to his senses. She'd been enjoying the time with him, enjoyed the attention he gave her. But she had been waiting for it to end. But seeing him get himself into such a state had made her hope that maybe it wouldn't.

She knew it was ridiculous. Jealousy shouldn't be the thing that made her realize Daniel was serious. She should have known by the way he had treated this whole thing. From the moment he'd kissed her in the bathroom he had been nothing but honest and up front with her. He wanted to try this, with her. But she couldn't stop second guessing it. Daniel, no matter how much he had grown, was still Daniel. It was hard for her to accept that he would like someone like her.

She sat with a sigh at the kitchen table. Her hands came up over her face, pushing her glasses up onto her forehead. Everything with Daniel was so sudden. She'd never really thought of him like that until she'd caught him kissing her sister. And even then it had just been a couple of stray thoughts. She'd found herself admiring the clear blue of his eyes or his sometimes dopey looking smile. But that hadn't meant anything. And she'd been able to forget the thoughts almost as soon as she had thought them.

Then he'd kissed her. And now all those thoughts had lodged their way into her brain. And they were slowly drowning out the very cautious voice in her head that told her; be careful, go slow, tread lightly. She was too sensible to look at the situation in an idealistic manner. She could trust Daniel, only so far as Daniel could trust himself. He was well meaning, that didn't mean he only ever did well. And she knew how badly it could hurt if he messed up. He'd be more than Walter ever could have been. But he could hurt her more than Walter ever could have.

The smell of smoke woke her from her thoughts.

"Betty!" Her sister's voice shouted from the living room.

"Sorry, sorry." She went back over to the stove and took the smoking pot from the burner. She was sure the burnt goo in the bottom of the pan resembled her brain at the moment. She sighed.

"Daniel." She breathed out.

………………………..

"Well if it isn't the future Mrs. Daniel Meade." Betty winced, and suffered a moment's indecision before walking resolutely past Amanda. But the skinny receptionist would have none of it. She stepped out from behind the desk to stand in Betty's way. Betty wondered briefly what Amanda would do if she just shoved her right out of the way. With a sigh she looked up at the other woman's annoyed face. She'd be so pretty if she didn't always look like the more wicked half-sister of the Wicked Witch of the West.

"What are you talking about, Amanda?" She let her annoyance show. The other woman whipped a newspaper out from behind her back.

"Check it out, it's in almost every paper. Billionaire playboy settles down with frumpy assistant. There's a very interesting photo of an intimate moment between the two of you in Mode offices. Every single artic-hey!" Betty snatched the paper from Amanda's hands and held it up in front of her face. Amanda was still talking at her, something about how this had to be some sick joke, a publicity stunt, anything except true, because if Daniel dated Betty then Amanda's whole world was going to go upside down.

"Is Daniel here yet?" Betty demanded, folding the paper messily before stuffing into her oversized purse. Amanda stared at her, wide eyed.

"That's all you have to say? I didn't want to believe it, but you aren't even denying it! You're dating him!" Betty took an angry step towards Amanda, who stepped back towards her desk.

"Is Daniel here yet?" She asked again. Amanda titled her head and gave her a hard stare, the way Betty imagined an eagle looked at a field mouse before it dove. Then with a dramatic hand on her hip and an exaggerated roll of her eyes she turned away from Betty. Betty looked to the heavens for patience and started down the hallway.

Daniel wasn't in his office. She frowned and checked her e-mail. No message saying he would be late. He should be here by now, so where was he? She sat at her desk and thought for a moment. Then she got up and started towards Alexis' office. He didn't know who else he would go to.

…………………

Daniel paced. And he paced, and he paced. He himself was dizzy by the time he threw himself bodily into Alex's overstuffed armchair. Alex looked at him with a raised eyebrow. She looked for all the world like their mother.

"Don't give me that look." He demanded, scowling at her. She had the audacity to smile at him.

"It's just the newspapers. They were going to find out sooner or later. It's best to find out now if she can take it. Being a Meade, especially now, means being in the news Danny." She said it so matter of fact, like it was something he should just accept. But he didn't know if Betty could accept it. She was private, she liked her quiet life in Queens. And he'd been dating her for all of two days. There was no way she trusted him enough yet, not to go through this. Not to jump through these rings of fire. He rubbed his face furiously.

"That's horrible for your complexion you know, rubs the oils from your hands into your pores. Very bad." Alex said. Even with his hands covering his eyes he could hear the smile in her voice.

"This is not funny, Alex. And I told you, it's Daniel. Betty isn't like the supermodels. She doesn't thrive on attention." He turned dramatically in the chair so he could watch Alex's reaction.

"I don't think it's funny. And I'll call you Daniel when you call me Alexis. Well I do think it's funny, but only because you're being such a baby about it." She leaned back in her chair and looked at her nails. "I think I need a new color." She muttered. Daniel stared at her in disbelief. When she finally met his eyes he looked away, to the ceiling above him. His head rocked back and forth.

"She's not going to want to do this. It won't be worth it for her. She's going to go back to mooning after that geeky accountant. Or worse, she'll go get Walter back." She made a look of disgust that set Alex into laughter again.

"I have never seen my little brother pout or whine over a woman before. And I thought my being a woman would be shocking." Her eye caught something out of her office window. She nodded slightly. Daniel started to turn to see who she was looking at.

"Danny." He looked at her. She was standing up from her desk and walking towards her. She sat down next to him. "The best thing you can do, little brother, is talk to her about it." Then she was up and whisking out of the room. Daniel groaned and covered his eyes.

"I could come back another time, but by then the newspapers will have us married off and having our first Meade heir." Betty's voice startled him so bad he fell awkwardly from the chair. On his knees he looked over at her, standing by the door with a newspaper clutched tightly in one hand. He stood up, nearly tripping over the other chair. Finally standing he straightened his shirt and tie.

"So you saw." He said, then looked over at her.

"Amanda accosted me with it on my way in." She shrugged and moved towards him. She sat on the chair. "I wasn't expecting them to find out this soon. Did you see the picture?" She asked. He nodded. He'd seen it. He knew who took it. Sophia. It must have been with her camera phone. The angle was odd and the image slightly grainy. But there was no mistaking that Daniel Meade had indeed been feeling up and making out with his assistant at her desk.

"You know, when I first met Sophia, I envied her. Not only was she intelligent and successful but she was gorgeous. I thought, if I worked with her long enough, maybe I could figure out how to be that." She shook her head. He carefully took the seat next to her. "But I don't ever want to be that person." She looked up at him, he was surprised to see the slightest hint of tears there.

"You could never be like Sophia, Betty. And I mean that as a compliment. You're so much more than she is. Loyalty, kindness, love, those are things Sophia isn't capable of." Betty sighed.

"She's beautiful. Daniel, she's the type of girl they expect to see you with. They're going to tear us up. I'm not pretty enough, I'm not fashionable enough to be Daniel Meade's girlfriend." He reached forward and took her hands in his.

"Betty, don't say that. You're beautiful. No, look at me." He lifted a hand to move her chin so she faced him again. "Besides, if you read the articles, half of them are already singing your praises as being the person who tames me." He smirked. She finally gave him a small smile.

"That's only because they can't think of another reason why you would date me, unless you wanted a nice, stable, ugly girl to 'settle down' with." She muttered. But she was smiling slightly at him.

"Imagine what they'd say if they knew you were taming long before you started dating me." He grinned at her. She smiled widely.

"Now that we've gotten over that crisis. Work?" He stood and offered her hand to her. She took it and stood.

"Yes. Work. As long as you promise to come out and need a file from me every time you see Amanda come near me." He nodded seriously. She grinned wider. Ahh, crisis averted. He took a deep breath and led her from Alex's office.

…………………………………………………………………………………………

Author's Note: I like this chapter. I think it stays in character. I hope so. This has more characters then I've ever put in any other chapter. So it was hard, very hard. I hope it's done well. I'm trying to at least put up a chapter a week. Since we aren't getting new ugly Betty in who knows how long!


	7. Bedroom

Disclaimer: Don't own. Wish I did. I just like to play with them for a while.

Author's Note: And here is the time fast-forward I warned of. As much fun as the day-to-day writing is, I'd like to progress their relationship (and make it dirty in the long run, really). This chapter is almost entirely about the 'Hook Up'.

Author's Note II: Sorry it's taken weeks. I had a nasty run-in with bronchitis and an ear infection that made me feel like I was being stabbed in the ear drum with a carving knife every time I swallowed. Not pleasant. Also, I get distracted easily. In fanfiction I move from pairing to pairing. If you've read my profile at all, you can see I'm generally a slash-girl. I like hot guy on hot guy stuff. Can't help it. So I got distracted by my favorite new pairing, which I will gladly share with you all before you get to read my story (which is turning up quite smutty); Scrubs, JD/Cox is my current love. I can't get enough. So I had to drag myself back here. But I still love Betty/Daniel. And so away we go!

………………………………………………………………………………….

The flickering light from the television reflected brightly in her glasses. The movie played down to the end, but Betty didn't notice. She was stretched out on his couch wrapped in his favorite blanket, a light blue monstrosity that was softer than anything he'd ever felt, with her head resting lightly on his knee. In her sleep she let out soft, gasping breaths. Not quite snores, no, the sounds were too soft for that. He had learned quickly that she had a habit of sleeping through the last fifteen minutes of the movies they rented.

To say that he was surprised at her sleeping tonight though would be an understatement. Tonight had been the first night in their three weeks of dating that Daniel had been able to convince Betty to come over to his place. They'd spent nights with her family, nights out to dinner, or seeing a movie, or the one night she'd convinced him to sing karaoke again with her. But every night she had let out subtle hints that she had no intention of going to his apartment.

He couldn't say he didn't understand. He did have a reputation and it was certainly a well-earned, and not completely untrue one. He hadn't pressured her, but it was getting hard to be satisfied with the occasional make-out in the elevator on the way out of work, or sweet goodbyes on her father's doorstep. He knew what she had really been telling him, the night she had blurted out that she'd only ever slept with Walter. She had no intention of being like any of his 'day' girls and he would have to learn to wait. And with Betty, as with no other woman he knew, he was willing to wait. Not that he didn't want her, and not that he didn't think about it. It was getting increasingly difficult to think of much else when they walked together, Betty snugged neatly under his arm. He found himself watching her walk down the hallway at work, watching the way her hips swayed. He'd never been much for women with curves, but Betty had changed that. He sighed his frustration quietly and looked down at Betty as she slept.

The movie switched back to the menu screen, and he realized he was going to have to wake her. It was late, sometime after one in the morning. He would go with her when the driver dropped her off. He hated the idea of just sending her home.

"Betty, wake up." He whispered, running a hand through her hair. He leaned down towards her and whispered closer to her ear. "Wake up Betty." She let out a groan and stretched, her eyes opening slowly to look up at him. Her brow furrowed in confusion.

"Daniel?" He chuckled. She sat up slowly, rubbing her eye with her hand. "Oh, I fell asleep." She smiled sleepily at him. "What time is it?" She looked around the living room for a clock.

"A little after one. I can get the driver to take you home, I'll go for the ride." He started to get up, but she grabbed his hand.

"I was thinking…" She trailed off. She looked at him, then back at the television, then back to him.

"You were thinking…? What were you thinking, Betty?" He sat back down, pushed her sleep mussed hair back from her face.

"I was thinking, maybe, if you wanted me to- I could stay. Here. For tonight." She was watching the couch, her hands nervously plucking at the expensive fabric of it. He felt the wide grin coming over his face, but he couldn't help it. Betty chose that moment to look up at him.

"Daniel!" Her voice was high and shaky, but she was smiling at him. He tried to stop grinning, he found he couldn't.

"I'm just wondering how long you planned this little seduction." He said, grinning even wider. Betty glared at him, then surprised him by looking flustered. He sat up straighter, pointing an accusing finger at her. "You did plan this! I can tell by your face! Betty Suarez had a plan to seduce me!" She grabbed his finger and pointed her own at his face.

"I was not planning on seducing you. I just thought- I just thought that maybe now was the time to- I mean- if you want to- you've never really said that you wanted to- so I wasn't sure, but I thought that-." She stopped and sighed, she looked up at him. "I was not planning on seducing you." He smiled softer, and turned his hand in hers so that he held hers tightly.

"I didn't say anything because I didn't want to push you. But yes, I want to. So yes, Betty, stay. Stay here tonight." He stood up and offered her a hand, she took it and he could feel the slight shaking of it. He pulled her towards him and she came willingly. He wrapped his arms around her. "You have nothing to be nervous about, Betty." She looked up at him. She started to lead her carefully to the bedroom. She knew the way, but she tripped several times. Each time he caught her easily, righting her gently, stopping to kiss her gently, before leading her on.

………………………

She was having a heart attack. There was no other way to describe what she was feeling. The closer they got to the bedroom, the faster her heart beat. She was so hot, how could she be this hot, when Daniel seemed to like to keep his apartment chill no matter what the weather outside. She'd complained about that once, while waiting for him to finish getting ready, and he had explained that it was easier to cozy under blankets to get warm than it was to keep losing layers of cover to get cool. He could keep piling on the blankets, but eventually he ran out of clothes to take off. He had seemed so adamant in his logic that she didn't argue the fact that it was practically ten below outside, and that there was no way his apartment would get so hot that he would need to go around naked.

She was pulled from her thoughts by Daniel stopping them just inside his bedroom. The lights were all off in his apartment and only the street lights illuminated the room. She felt his arms come around her waist from behind her. He moved one hand up to push her hair to the side and then his lips pressed softly to the spot on the back of her neck just below her hairline. She shivered, he held her tighter. She took comfort from the familiar feeling of his arms holding her. She was nervous. She felt her heart skip a beat, and then another, as the hand at her waist inched just under her shirt. His hand was cool on her overheated stomach. She sucked in a sharp breath at it.

"You okay?" he murmured against her neck, moving his head so that it rested on her shoulder, near her ear. She smiled and nodded.

"Betty?" He questioned again, and she knew he wanted her to speak.

"Yes." She breathed out, barely noticing the breathy quality of her voice. He moved around from behind her and took her hand again. He led her to the bed and sat down on it with her. He put his hand on her cheek, turning her towards him and leaning in to kiss her. She let him push her down on the bed, lying on her side in the curve of his body. He ran a hand down the length of her body, stopping to knead her hips gently.

She reached out a hand to toy with the buttons on his shirt, undoing one, then moving onto the next. She noticed him holding his breath as she did. His hand found it's way up her shirt, trailing lightly over her back. She had gotten all the buttons undone, and as he started to kiss her neck she pushed it off his broad shoulders. He threw the shirt across the room, then sat up, pulling her with him, to take her own shirt off. He threw that in the same direction as his. He cupped her face in his hands, running a thumb over her full lips. He leaned over her to gently kiss her ear. She couldn't help the moan she let out. She could feel him smile against her and he moved down to her neck, nuzzling and nipping. She worked her own, shaking hands under his wife-beater, pulling it up and separating from him long enough to pull it off of him.

…………

In the light of the streetlights he looked at her. Her eyes were bright and fevered and he wondered if his were the same. He ran a hand through her hair.

"Betty." He breathed and she shivered against him. He was leaning over her on the bed, bare skin to bare skin. He could feel the softness of her breasts against him, feel the heat of her skin on his. Her legs were tangled in his. He moved slowly, kissing his way down her body, biting lightly at her hip, then licking over the bite marks. Her hands were in his hair and she was making little moans and gasps that made him want to kiss her all night. He'd never felt like this before, languorous and slow, taking his time to learn every part of her body. She curled her toes every time he found a particularly sensitive spot on her. And she wasn't loud, she was quiet and whispers and softness. Everything about her was different and sweet. Her insecurities had fled as she had discovered ways to graze his skin with her fingertips in ways that made him groan against her flush skin.

Finally she pulled his head up to kiss his lips, her fingertips running over the angles of his face in a way that made him shiver. She pressed her lips just next to his ear.

"Daniel. Please." Whispered so softly he almost thought he didn't hear her. He pulled away to look at her, she nodded, biting her lip and smiling just slightly. He kissed her fiercely, reaching for the condom on the table next to the bed.

……….

They moved together, like they had been made to do so. Her breath was hot and sweet on his cheek, her arms holding him tightly. There was no space between them, just heat and sweat and breath and gasped pleas to one another. He said her name like a prayer at the moment when her nails bit into his arm and he couldn't hold himself back anymore.

For Daniel it was the first time he'd ever really understood the difference between having sex and making love. And as clichéd as that thought was, he found he didn't mind. He was reluctant to move even an inch away from her. He held her close, waiting for their breath to slow, their heart beats to lessen. The tiny curls of her hair at the base of her neck tickled his nose and he buried his face in her neck. His arms tightened around her.

For Betty it was the first time she had realized that she could make her own demands. That this could be as much about her as it was about him. And Daniel was giving and sweet and had moved achingly slowly with her. The feel of his chest against her back was comforting. And for the first time she had no desire to jump back into her clothes. As the sweat dried off of them she began to chill. Daniel lifted the heavy comforter from where it was tangled at the end of the bed and wrapped them both in it. She fell asleep to feel of his breath brushing past her ear, and his legs in tangle with hers.

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Author's Note III: A whole chapter dedicated to sex. I hope it was good for all of you. It's always nerve wracking to write this kind of stuff. So here's hoping. Let me know.


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